Chapter 23: Chapter 23

Leo and Heidi

Speyer, Germany 

Heidi raised an eyebrow, “And why, dare I ask, my father had it? He said that his book had been passed down from clan head to clan head for generations. Our clan has no free mages. Had not had one for many generations.”

“Yes, indeed. What you say is true,” Seb confirmed for all of those present. “Aer clan had not birthed any free mages since the middle ages. As for the Codex, I have no idea why your father had it. Nor why he chose to hide it from everyone, especially the Church.”

“And how does that help us? We cannot read it. Unless you can?” Heidi asked, hopeful.

“I am sorry, but I also cannot access the Codex. No doubt Viktor had tried various methods to get the information hidden in this book,” Seb answered, pointing to the book in his hands. “No doubt only a free mage can view it. That leaves it up to you, boy.”

Leo blinked rapidly and asked, “How? It is not a language I know. All I can see on those pages is just gibberish.”

“It is not a language, boy, that lets you read the book. It is about who you are. Tell me. You could see the diagrams moving, lines floating above the book, right?” Seb asked; sure, Leo didn't understand what he meant.

“Well, yes. How did you…?” Leo began.

Sebastian interrupted him before he could proceed, “That is because you are almost there. We believe that what makes you a mage is not your bloodline. That isn’t how the other clans like to think.”

Sebastian paused to gather his thoughts and continued, “Mages do not cultivate their talent because of preserved bloodlines. Sure, having one helps. However, I do not know how. 

“What makes you a mage is the potential to develop a mana core. Anyone could do it. That is how it used to be when mana was abundant,” Seb said.

“Then why do we believe that magic is not real? That it is just fantasy?” Leo asked.

“Because that is what you were conditioned to believe, Leo. Commoners were never meant to hold power by the Church’s standards. That is why they have tried so hard to hide the truth about magic over the years. Do you know that there is this belief that your mind is capable of great feats if it believes? How sometimes we can fool ourselves to muster more energy to complete a task or recover from the flu faster than usual?” Seb asked.

Leo nodded. Seeing that he agreed with him, Seb continued, “Being a mage is similar. You have to have the belief first. And deep down inside you,” he pointed with a finger to Leo’s chest, “you believe that magic is real.” 

“Then why can't I read the damn book?” Leo asked, clearly frustrated.

“I believe that is because you have not formed an entire core yet. You have not realized your potential. That is why you can access the information partially, seeing only some lines and gibberish. 

“This book, Leo, supposedly has all the knowledge and secrets attained by the free mages, and people from the Church would do anything,” Seb paused and looked him in the eye to see how serious he was. ”I repeat everything - to get their hands on it. You must guard it with your life. Promise me!”

Seb’s half-shout surprised Leo, as he did not expect the man to go from a serene explanation to a threat in a second, so he did the only thing he could think of and agreed, “I promise, sir!”

Looking pleased that Leo understood the gravity of the situation, Seb nodded and got up, handing the book to Heidi, who promptly wrapped it up in rags and got up to follow her uncle, walking to the door. 

“What are you waiting for?” Heidi asked, motioning Leo to follow.

“Where are we going?” he asked, running after her and Seb.

Exiting the church, Seb went to an old VW pickup and replied, shoving a finger toward it, “We are going away from here. It does us no good to linger on church territory, even if abandoned. Iscariot may ignore the world, but he can catch you pretty quickly as you are trespassing the moment he decides to do so.” 

Leo and Heidi looked at each other and shrugged, not understanding his meaning. Seb moved to open the pickup’s door and motioned for Heidi to sit in the middle. Then he got in, leaving Leo to choose the only seat left. Turning the key, Seb tried to start the car, but it did not want to and made a loud whining noise from the ignition. 

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“Not so subtle, is it, uncle?” Heidi asked with a smirk.

“Still beats having to spend hours at the back of a truck trailer,” Leo commented, rubbing his fingers, which were frozen after sitting in the dark and cold church. 

“No one pays attention to such things here, niece. Helps to blend right in with the muds,” Sebastian smiled And tried to start the car again. This time it obliged, and they started their long drive in the cold and empty Speyer streets early in the morning, the fog covering the rising sun. 

“I found a cabin in the woods, not so far from here. It will help us to hide,” Sebastian explained before he was interrupted by a loud shooting noise from the pickup.

Heidi jumped in her seat, surprised by the noise, and asked, “Are you sure no one pays attention to such things, uncle? This car could wake up a dead man. How old is it?”

“It is not the age, niece, but the reliability that matters. And having no electronics means they cannot track you. Where are your phones, by the way? Take ‘em out and turn them off. Remove the battery,” he urged them, waving a hand at them to hurry up. Both of them obliged. 

Sebastian continued, “Now, where was I? Ah, yes, the cabin. I found it some nine years ago or so.”

“That is around the time you stopped coming to visit, uncle. May I ask why?” Heidi asked, thoughtful. 

Seb thought about it, responding, “I stopped visiting because I was searching for something, as per your father’s request.”

“What was the request?” Heidi was surprised. 

“To find where Alea, the rumored leader of the free mages at the time, had grown up. As the Church could not find all the artifacts related to the free mages and destroy them, your father believed that there were some places they had not managed to find, such as her childhood cabin.”

“And why was that place so important? What did my father expect to find there?”

“The only thing that matters to us mages: freedom!” Sebastian exclaimed. 

“Freedom from the shackles put on us by the Church. Finally, to free our cores and pick up arms after all these years!” he got excited and took a turn harder than intended, almost running into a ditch.

Leo was silent and observed Sebastian as the man became erratic again and decided to ask, “But I understood from Heidi that the ritual is permanent?”

“Yes, boy, as far as we know at the moment. However, the Walpurga was, if anything, resourceful and crafty, able to stand up to Iscariot for all those years. She supposedly told Inca, our ancestor, that there was a way to ‘save the turned.’ That was the phrase she used. Viktor and I thought that it was related to the way to reverse the slave spell.”

“Let’s say we believe for a second that it is possible. Still,” Heidi interrupted, “I do not understand. Why vanish for all those years?”

“Simple, to put the Church off my tracks. It is easier to explain that the old uncle Sebastian went mad and ran off than to explain what he has been doing in the Black Forest for over ten years. What matters is that by the end of the day, I found the cabin,” Sebastian said, smug.

“And?” both Heidi and Leo asked expectantly.

“Nothing. I could not find a single thing in it. The whole shack looked like an ordinary old cabin. It is weird that it still stands after hundreds of years. I stayed to continue my search. I feel it in my gut - I am close,” Sebastian said and clenched his hands around the steering wheel. 

“What or who was the Walpurga, by the way?” Heidi asked.

“We are here. I will explain when we get inside,” Sebastian said and pulled the truck to a stop, its headlights illuminating an old wooden cabin hidden in the woods.

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